Edmund Spenser famous quotes

Men, when their actions succeed not as they would, are always ready to impute the blame thereof to heaven, so as to excuse their own follies.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Men #Heaven #Succeed

Gather the rose of love whilst yet is time.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Time #Rose

Be bold, and everywhere be bold.
-- Edmund Spenser

For there is nothing lost, that may be found, if sought.
-- Edmund Spenser

#May #Lost #Found

The noblest mind the best contentment has
-- Edmund Spenser

#Mind #Self Improvement #Contentment

And he that strives to touch the stars Oft stumbles at a straw.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Stars #Strive #Strife

Ill can he rule the great that cannot reach the small.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Leadership #Ill

Good is no good, but if it be spend, God giveth good for none other end.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Charity #Ends

Those that were up themselves, kept others low; Those that were low themselves, held others hard; He suffered them to ryse or greater grow; But every one did strive his fellow down to throw.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Ambition #Strive #Lows

In one consort there sat cruel revenge and rancorous despite, disloyal treason and heart-burning hate.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Revenge #Hate #Heart

Discord oft in music makes the sweeter lay.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Discord

The Patron of true Holinesse, Foule Errour doth defeate: Hypocrisie him to entrappe, Doth to his home entreate.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Book #Home #Patron

What man so wise, what earthly wit so ware, As to descry the crafty cunning train, By which deceit doth mask in visor fair, And cast her colours dyed deep in grain, To seem like truth, whose shape she well can feign, And fitting gestures to her purpose frame, The guiltless man with guile to entertain?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Wise #Men #Deceit

Death is an equall doome To good and bad, the common In of rest.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Death #Common #Good And Bad

There learned arts do flourish in great honour And poets's wits are had in peerless price; Religion hath lay power, to rest upon her, Advancing virtue, and suppressing vice. For end all good, all grace there freely grows, Had people grace it gratefully to use: For God His gifts there plenteously bestows, But graceless men them greatly do abuse.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Art #Men #People

The fish once caught, new bait will hardly bite.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Bait #Caught #Fishes

Hasty wrath and heedless hazardy do breed repentance late and lasting infamy.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Wrath #Rage #Repentance

Who would ever care to do brave deed, Or strive in virtue others to excel, If none should yield him his deserved meed Due praise, that is the spur of doing well? For if good were not praised more than ill, None would choose goodness of his own free will.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Yield #Brave #Spurs

Through knowledge we behold the world's creation, How in his cradle first he fostered was; And judge of Nature's cunning operation, How things she formed of a formless mass.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Judging #World #Firsts

Me seemes the world is runne quite out of square,From the first point of his appointed sourse,And being once amisse growes daily wourse and wourse.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Squares #World #Firsts

But angels come to lead frail minds to rest in chaste desires, on heavenly beauty bound. You frame my thoughts, and fashion me within; you stop my tongue, and teach my heart to speak.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Fashion #Heart #Angel

At last, the golden orientall gate Of greatest heaven gan to open fayre, And Phoebus, fresh as brydegrome to his mate, Came dauncing forth, shaking his dewie hayre; And hurls his glistring beams through gloomy ayre.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Heaven #Aurora #Golden

One day I wrote her name upon the strand, But came the waves and washèd it away: Again I wrote it with a second hand, But came the tide and made my pains his prey. Vain man (said she) that dost in vain assay A mortal thing so to immortalise; For I myself shall like to this decay, And eke my name be wipèd out likewise. Not so (quod I); let baser things devise To die in dust, but you shall live by fame; My verse your virtues rare shall eternise, And in the heavens write your glorious name: Where, when as Death shall all the world subdue, Our love shall live, and later life renew.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Pain #Writing #Men

Ah! when will this long weary day have end, And lende me leave to come unto my love? - Epithalamion
-- Edmund Spenser

#Long #Ends #Weary

What more felicitie can fall to creature Than to enjoy delight with libertie, And to be lord of all the workes of Nature, To raine in th' aire from earth to highest skie, To feed on flowres and weeds of glorious feature.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Weed #Nature #Fall

Bright as does the morning star appear, Out of the east with flaming locks bedight, To tell the dawning day is drawing near.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Morning #Stars #Drawing

All that in this world is great or gay, Doth, as a vapor, vanish and decay.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Gay #Decay #World

The nightingale is sovereign of song.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Song #Sovereign #Nightingales

And painefull pleasure turnes to pleasing paine.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Pleasure #Paine

For if good were not praised more than ill, None would chuse goodness of his own free will.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Free Will #Praise #Goodness

Foul jealousy! that turnest love divine to joyless dread, and makest the loving heart with hateful thoughts to languish and to pine.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Jealousy #Heart #Hateful

Yet is there one more cursed than they all, That canker-worm, that monster, jealousie, Which eats the heart and feeds upon the gall, Turning all love's delight to misery, Through fear of losing his felicity.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Jealousy #Heart #Monsters

Fondnesse it were for any being free, To covet fetters, though they golden bee.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Freedom #Being Free #Golden

So let us love, dear Love, like as we ought; Love is the lesson which the Lord us taught.
-- Edmund Spenser

#God #Love Is #Lessons

So Orpheus did for his owne bride, So I unto my selfe alone will sing, The woods shall to me answer and my Eccho ring.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Singing #Answers #Woods

good Hobbinoll, what garres thee greete? What! hath some wolfe thy tender lambes ytorne? Or is thy bagpype broke, that soundes so sweete? Or art thou of thy loved lasse forlorne?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Art #Mourning #Broke

So passeth, in the passing of a day, Of mortall life the leafe, the bud, the flowre
-- Edmund Spenser

#Bud #Passing #Passings

All sorts of flowers the which on earth do spring In goodly colours gloriously arrayed; Go to my love, where she is careless laid
-- Edmund Spenser

#Spring #Flower #Earth

Like as the culver on the bared bough Sits mourning for the absence of her mate
-- Edmund Spenser

#Mourning #Absence #Mates

Joy may you have and gentle hearts content Of your loves couplement: And let faire Venus, that is Queene of love, With her heart-quelling Sonne upon you smile
-- Edmund Spenser

#Heart #Joy #May

Make haste therefore, sweet love, whilst it is prime, For none can call again the passed time.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Sweet #Sweet Love #Haste

My Love is like to ice, and I to fire: How comes it then that this her cold so great Is not dissolved through my so hot desire, But harder grows the more I her entreat?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Love Is #Fire #Ice

Such is the power of love in gentle mind, That it can alter all the course of kind.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Mind #Kind #Power Of Love

Waking love suffereth no sleepe: Say, that raging love dothe appall the weake stomacke: Say, that lamenting love marreth the musicall.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Passion #Waking #Rage

Unhappie Verse, the witnesse of my unhappie state, Make thy selfe fluttring wings of thy fast flying Thought
-- Edmund Spenser

#Wings #Poetry #Flying

And through the hall there walked to and fro A jolly yeoman, marshall of the same, Whose name was Appetite; he did bestow Both guestes and meate, whenever in they came, And knew them how to order without blame.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Order #Names #Yeoman

Fresh spring the herald of love's mighty king.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Love #Kings #Spring

This iron world bungs down the stoutest hearts to lowest state; for misery doth bravest minds abate.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Heart #Iron #Mind

From good to bad, and from bad to worse, From worse unto that is worst of all, And then return to his former fall.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Fall #Return #Worst

Greatest god below the sky.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Money #Sky

Vain-glorious man, when fluttering wind does blow In his light wing's, is lifted up to sky; The scorn of-knighthood and true chivalry. To think, without desert of gentle deed And noble worth, to be advanced high, Such praise is shame, but honour, virtue's meed, Doth bear the fairest flower in honourable seed.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Flower #Men #Thinking

For since mine eyes your joyous sight did miss, my cheerful day is turned to cheerless night.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Eye #Night #Sight

The man whom nature's self had made to mock herself, and truth to imitate.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Men #Self #He Man

For next to Death is Sleepe to be compared; Therefore his house is unto his annext: Here Sleepe, ther Richesse, and hel-gate them both betwext.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Sleep #House #Next

For evil deeds may better than bad words be borne.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Evil #Deeds #May

Fly from wrath; sad be the sights and bitter fruits of war; a thousand furies wait on wrathful swords.
-- Edmund Spenser

#War #Wrath #Sight

Woe to the man that first did teach the cursed steel to bite in his own flesh, and make way to the living spirit!
-- Edmund Spenser

#War #Men #Steel

Sweet breathing Zephyrus did softly play, A gentle spirit, that lightly did delay Hot Titan's beams, which then did glister fair
-- Edmund Spenser

#Sweet #Breathing #Play

How many perils doe enfold The righteous man to make him daily fall.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Fall #Men #Temptation

The ever-whirling wheele Of Change, to which all mortal things doth sway.
-- Edmund Spenser

What more felicity can fall to creature, than to enjoy delight with liberty?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Fall #Liberty #Delight

Vaine is the vaunt, and victory unjust, that more to mighty hands, then rightfull cause doth trust.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Hands #Victory #Causes

Why then should witless man so much misweene That nothing is but that which he hath seene?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Men #Should

But O the exceeding grace Of highest God, that loves his creatures so, And all his works with mercy doth embrace, That blessed angels, he sends to and fro, To serve to wicked man, to serve his wicked foe.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Blessed #Angel #Men

The poets scrolls will outlive the monuments of stone. Genius survives; all else is claimed by death.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Survival #Genius #Stones

The gentle minde by gentle deeds is knowne.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Gentleman #Deeds #Gentle

Entire affection hateth nicer hands.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Jealous #Hands #Affection

Her angel's face, As the great eye of heaven shined bright, And made a sunshine in the shady place.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Eye #Angel #Sunshine

Hard it is to teach the old horse to amble anew.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Horse #Teach

Pour out the wine without restraint or stay, Pour not by cups, but by the bellyful, Pour out to all that wull.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Wine #Cups #Restraint

Much more profitable and gracious is doctrine by example than by rule.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Example #Doctrine #Gracious

But Justice, though her dome doom she doe prolong,Yet at the last she will her owne cause right.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Justice #Doe #Lasts

For of the soule the bodie forme doth take; For the soule is forme, and doth the bodie make.
-- Edmund Spenser

Much can they praise the trees so straight and high, The sailing pine,the cedar proud and tall, The vine-prop elm, the poplar never dry, The builder oak, sole king of forests all, The aspin good for staves, the cypress funeral, The laurel, meed of mighty conquerors And poets sage, the fir that weepest still, The yew obedient to the bender's will, The birch for shafts, the sallow for the mill, The myrrh sweet-bleeding in the bitter wound, The warlike beech, the ash for nothing ill, The fruitful olive, and the platane round, The carver holm, the maple seldom inward sound.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Sweet #Kings #Funeral

For deeds to die, however nobly done, And thoughts of men to as themselves decay, But wise words taught in numbers for to run, Recorded by the Muses, live for ay.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Wise #Running #Men

Gold all is not that doth golden seem.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Gold #Golden

No daintie flowre or herbe that growes on grownd, No arborett with painted blossoms drest And smelling sweete, but there it might be fownd To bud out faire, and throwe her sweete smels al arownd.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Bud #Might #Als

He oft finds med'cine, who his griefe imparts; But double griefs afflict concealing harts, As raging flames who striveth to supresse.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Grief #Epic #Flames

But times do change and move continually.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Change #Moving

Who will not mercy unto others show, How can he mercy ever hope to have?
-- Edmund Spenser

#Hope #Mercy #Having Hope

For easy things, that may be got at will, Most sorts of men do set but little store.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Men #May #Littles

Gather therefore the Rose, whilst yet is prime, For soon comes age, that will her pride deflower: Gather the Rose of love, whilst yet is time.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Love #Pride #Rose

The gentle mind by gentle deeds is known, For a man by nothing is so well betrayed As by his manners.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Men #Mind #Deeds

I was promised on a time To have reason for my rhyme; From that time unto this season, I received nor rhyme nor reason.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Reason #Rhyme

The mind maketh good or ill, wretch or happy, rich or poor.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Greatness #Mind #Rich

Then came October, full of merry glee.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Autumn #Glee #October

And thus of all my harvest-hope I have Nought reaped but a weedye crop of care.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Care #Harvest #Crops

There is continual spring, and harvest there Continual, both meeting at one time: For both the boughs do laughing blossoms bear, And with fresh colours deck the wanton prime, And eke attonce the heavy trees they climb, Which seem to labour under their fruits load: The whiles the joyous birds make their pastime Amongst the shady leaves, their sweet above, And their true loves without suspicion tell abroad.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Sweet #Time #Spring

To be wise and eke to love, Is granted scarce to gods above.
-- Edmund Spenser

#Life #Wise #Love Is

Ah when will this long weary day have end, And lend me leave to come unto my love? How slowly do the hours their numbers spend! How slowly does sad Time his feathers move!
-- Edmund Spenser

#Time #Moving #Numbers